Broken
by cstar09
Summary: pre ROTF. Sam and Mikaela have been together for some time, but when Mikaela starts to change, Sam can't help but think that something is going on with her.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Sam Witwicky drove his girlfriend, Mikaela Banes, home after their date which consisted mainly of sitting on top of Bumblebee and looking up at the sky. The happy couple had been dating for four months and it didn't look like it was ending anytime soon. Mikaela loved Sam for his quirkiness, but also for how lovable he could be towards her. Sam loved Mikaela mostly for how she wasn't ashamed about the fact that she was almost too good to be true and he was considered the "loser" of the school. The fact that they could be together for so long really blew his mind. Along with how amazingly sexy she was.

The drive home was mostly filled with a comfortable silence, and it didn't take long for Bumblebee to reach Mikaela's front door.

"So, you two can pick me up a little early tomorrow? I have to make up a test for Folger since I missed class last week." Mikaela asked.

"Yeah of course. Didn't you miss like three days? Where were you?" Sam questioned.

"Um….uh…I went out of town. My dad wanted to visit some family so I went with him." She said. She had trouble finding an excuse for the real reason she wasn't in school those three days.

"Oh cool. Okay, well I'll see you tomorrow, bright and early!" Mikaela laughed and kissed Sam goodbye before jumping out of Bee and walking up the steps to her house. She waved to the yellow Camero carrying her dork of a boyfriend and took a deep breath as she unlocked the door of the house and opened it.

The lights throughout the house were off and Mikaela heard no noise coming from upstairs. She checked her phone which read 12:33 am.

"Maybe he didn't come home yet. Maybe he's still out with her." She tried to calm herself down. Her father, Dave, and she didn't have a great relationship to start with, especially now that he was dating that whore Victoria. With her being 33 minutes after curfew, she knew things wouldn't go well tonight. She started to walk up the stairs when the kitchen light snapped on and there he stood. His arms crossed and his eyes narrowing at her as she walked back down the few stairs she climbed.

"MIKAELA! WHERE WERE YOU?! You are exactly 33 minutes late! You know what that means. Get upstairs in your room until I get up there. You are such a child and I can't trust you with even getting home at the right time! A disgrace is what you are! It's no wonder why I constantly have to teach you a lesson! Get upstairs! Now." Mikaela quickly ran up the stairs and shut the door to her room with her back against the door. Slowly sliding down to the ground, she wished, like most other teenagers, her father would just yell at her for being late like she was. Even being grounded would be better than what she knew was coming.

Slightly shaking she waited for ten minutes, imagining what her father was going to do to her. His feet pounded up the stairs and to her bedroom door. She quickly stood up and backed away from the door which swung open to reveal her father with a black belt in his right hand. Before she could react, her grabbed her arm and swung her around and began beating her back and stomach waiting for her to cry out for him to stop. The problem was, Mikaela was strong and she knew if she kept quiet, he would lose interest more quickly than if she gave him the satisfaction of her crying.

The beating went on for fifteen minutes, nonstop, before Dave lost interest and finally just pushed her into the wall, knocking Mikaela out. The door slammed shut as the high school beauty lay bleeding and in pain in her bedroom. It would be hours before she woke up again.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Mikaela's alarm clock was beeping constantly, flashing 6:00 across its screen. Crumpled up in a heap on the floor lay Mikaela, who finally started moaning and awoke to hear her alarm clock beeping across the room. She tried to stand up when pain shot through her entire body. Her head throbbed and her back, stomach and legs burned as she forced herself to stand, knowing that if the clock woke up her father, she would be in for "Round 2". She limped across the room and hit the snooze button just in time before falling onto her bed in pain. Her almost daily beatings were not unusual to Mikaela, but that didn't mean she was used to the pain that followed them. She gathered her strength and forced herself up so that she could take a shower and relieve her pain slightly.

Her clock now read 6:10 and she hurried (the best that she could) to her bathroom but not before peeking inside her father's room checking to make sure he was still sleeping. Luckily he was and she breathed a quiet sigh of relief.

In her bathroom she turned on the hot water in the shower and carefully took off her clothes. Her eyes were closed shut as she stood in front of the mirror, scared to see the amount of damage done to her this time. She forced her eyes open, finally, and gasped at the sight in front of her. Her entire stomach was black with bruises that traveled to her back and down to her legs. She felt the welts on her back and legs. Brushing her fingers over them she winced slightly in pain. Mikaela shivered and walked away from the mirror and into the shower.

The hot water and steam burned at first but quickly soothed her pain. She leaned against the wall of the shower for a few minutes just to relax and a few tears rolled down her cheeks. Mikaela loved her father, and she knew that he had a tough time adjusting from his life in prison, but she also knew she was in trouble.

"I can't tell anyone about my dad." She thought. "I just finally got him back after living by myself for three years. They can't take him away again. I can deal with this." This was her usual mentality about her situation. She was torn between her love for her dad and her respect for herself. She always exhausted herself thinking about her problem so, like usual, she cleared her mind and quickly finished her shower. She didn't forget that Sam was picking her up early and she needed to get ready soon.

She chose skinny jeans and a t-shirt for her outfit that day. Her father knew that beating her arms would give him away because Mikaela always wore shirts that showed her arms. Deciding her outfit was acceptable for that day, Mikaela quickly did her hair and make-up, racing against the clock. She ran down the stairs (as fast as she could with her injuries), grabbed her school bag, threw a banana in it and popped two Tylenol in her mouth. She usually had a high tolerance for pain, but sitting in a chair all day with nothing to think about but the pain really made it worse for some reason. She filled a glass of water just as she heard Bee pull up in her driveway. Checking her bag one more time to make sure she had everything she needed for the day, she opened her front door and walked to the car, which already was open for her.

"Hey baby." Sam said as he greeted Mikaela with a kiss. "You look beautiful today."

"Thank you. But you say that _every_ morning Sam." She teased. Sam always knew how to brighten her day, no matter how cloudy it started out as.

"I wouldn't lie to you. It's the truth." He responded. Mikaela's smile grew wider and she took his hand as Bee sped down the highway. Bee parked in the school parking lot in record time. Unfortunately, Sam and Mikaela were too busy making out that they didn't even notice that they had arrived at school. Bee blew his horn as loud as he could while blaring his radio to get the couple's attention. Startled by the noise the two broke apart and Sam hit his head on the roof of the car.

"God damn it Bee! Did you really have to do that?!" Sam yelled. Bee's response was opening his driver side door and expelling Sam out onto the ground.

"Fine! Fine! I get it! We'll pay better attention next time." Sam told the smirking Camero. Well, if he were human, he would _definitely_ be smirking. Throughout this whole playful fight between the two friends, Mikaela slowly stood out of the car and picked up her bag. It caused her so much pain to put her bag on her shoulder, but she couldn't let anyone see so she quickly hid her wince. She walked around to the other side of the car where Sam was standing, brushing off his pants that were dusted in dirt. She laughed at the sight of her boyfriend desperately trying to make himself look presentable. Sam looked up when he heard her laugh and just the look in her eyes made him start to laugh as well.

Sam finally cleaned himself up and took Mikaela's hand as they walked into the school. After visiting both of their lockers, the couple parted ways as Sam went to go visit his techie friends before class started, and Mikaela left to go make up her missed test.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Mikaela walked toward the parking lot after a tough day at school. Not only did she feel distracted during her make-up test that morning, but the Tylenol she took wore off too quickly and by lunchtime she was in pain again. Along with that she didn't have time to make a lunch for herself in the morning so she was stuck with just a banana for lunch and breakfast. Her day wasn't all terrible though. Most of the classes she had with Sam and just being next to him made her feel ten times better than she had been feeling. Mikaela finally reached Bee and noticed Sam hadn't made it over yet so she opened the door and just sat down in the passenger seat to wait for him. Bee's engine roared in greeting and Mikaela laughed a little.

"Hey Bee. How's it going?" She asked.

"_And I'm feeling…good."_ Sang the radio. Mikaela laughed louder this time.

"I'm glad Bee. I'm glad you're "feeling good" she mocked. The horn beeped loudly to cut off Mikaela's laughter. "I'm just kidding Bee. You know that!" Mikaela heard footsteps outside the door and turned to see Sam opening the driver's side door and climbing in.

"Hey Kaela. How was your day?" He kissed her quickly and then sat back to let Bee start his engine.

"Do you mean the ten minutes I didn't see you, or the six hours that I did see you today?" She teased.

"Definitely the six hours that we were together today." Sam responded.

"Well then it was perfect." She replied and then kissed Sam again. The ride home was filled with the couple really filling each other in on what happened during the day.

"Hey, so do you need to get home or do you want to hang out at my house?" Sam asked. Mikaela thought for a second.

"I'm pretty sure I'm grounded so I probably should get home. Even though I much rather be with you." She answered.

"Wait, how did you get grounded? We just went out last night?" Sam questioned.

"Well….I was just a little over my curfew, but its okay. It's not that big of a deal." Mikaela answered quickly.

"What? Not that big of a deal? You're grounded now because of me. Why didn't you tell me you had a curfew?" Sam asked.

"It's really no big deal. Seriously. My dad really isn't that strict so I'll probably be ungrounded in a couple days. It's fine Sam." She argued.

"It sounds like a bigger deal than you're making it Mikaela! Why couldn't you tell me? I would've gotten you home in time and then everything would be fine. I just don't get you sometimes!" He was yelling now.

"I _never_ understand you Sam! You can't just accept the fact that I don't feel like I have you tell you everything! I have secrets too Sam! Not just you!" Mikaela wasn't just talking about her curfew now, but of course, Sam didn't know that. Bee pulled up to Mikaela's house and before he stopped fully she jumped out of the car and stomped up the stairs and opened the door to her house without saying anything else to Sam. She knew her father always went out with Victoria on Mondays and they stayed out late pretty much every time. So she was on her own tonight, but that was perfectly fine with her. Actually that was the ideal situation. She searched through her refrigerator for a few minutes before she finally realized she wasn't hungry anymore. She climbed the stairs up to her room and flopped down on her bed face down. Silent tears started streaming down her face as she lay. Her mother was gone, her father was abusing her and now she just pushed away the only person who really cared about her. Even though it had only been a few minutes since their fight, Mikaela already missed Sam. Enough to make her almost text him an apology. She would have done it too if her phone hadn't died earlier today. She threw her phone across the room and laid face down in her pillow. She was exhausted and her back and stomach hurt her badly but Mikaela didn't care. She passed out on her bed thinking about Sam and her father.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Mikaela awoke to the sound of a door slamming and people talking downstairs. She glanced at the clock which read 11:00 and did a double take just to make sure.

"I slept for seven hours?!" she said out loud to herself. Shaking her head to wake herself up more she climbed off of her bed and decided to listen into her father and Victoria's conversation (she knew it was them who came into the house) to see if it was safe enough to come downstairs. Walking out of her room she stopped at the top of the stairs and listened silently.

"Where the hell is that girl?! I told her to make food for us and she obviously didn't! When I see her I'm going to make her wish she was never born!" her father started walking to the front of the house where the stairs were and began yelling to the second level of the house hoping Mikaela was listening . "Do you hear that?! I'm going to wish you were never…" he stopped as he saw Mikaela at the top of the stairs, obviously listening in to his and Victoria's private conversation. It took him about two seconds before he starting charging up the stairs and Mikaela decided it was time to run back to her room and try to keep him out. Unfortunately, she was not fast enough and her father grabbed her hair and dragged her down the stairs.

"You good for nothing piece of shit! I'm tired of having to clean up all of your messes! I told you to make me dinner and you DIDN'T! You don't know how much trouble you're in!" he threw her into the kitchen and began kicking her while still screaming. "You're such a fuck-up! I can't believe you even have a boyfriend! Obviously that kid has no taste in girls." The kicking went on for a few minutes when Dave thought of something he never thought to do before. He picked Mikaela back up by her hair and to the front door. He opened the door and (literally) kicked her out of the house.

"If you _ever_ come back, I swear you're going to die. I'll kill you girl!" he laughed and then slammed the door shut and Mikaela heard the door lock. Tears streaming down her face, Mikaela ran away from the only father she ever knew in her life. The one person who made her life a living hell and tortured her everyday, but she was still crying. Crying because she could never come back ever again. Crying because she had no idea what she could do or where she could go.

"Sam." She remembered. "Of course I'll go to him. If he speaks to me."

*Earlier that day*

Sam had just finished eating dinner with his parents and he was in his room staring at the ceiling. He thought about the fight he had with Mikaela today and how stupid it was. He was so protective over her though and he just wanted her to be happy. He was pretty sure he loved her. Sam finally decided that he couldn't wait until tomorrow to see her and apologize, he wanted to call her now and ease their relationship. Grabbing his phone he flipped it open and typed the number in by heart. He listened as her phone went straight to voicemail. He decided to leave her a message but he was discouraged that she wasn't answering her phone. He rolled off of his bed and trudged downstairs. He couldn't talk to Mikaela right now so second best would have to be Bee.

Making his way outside and into the garage he saw the yellow car that he loved like a brother. Just like his and Mikaela's relationship, his relationship with Bee had grown over the past weeks as well. Bee flashed his lights in greeting and drove outside to transform into his usual self.

"Hey Bee." Sam said. Bee danced around and belted out "Hey Ya" as his choice of song to greet his best friend.

"Bee seriously. You need to have a better choice in songs. I mean "Hey Ya"? What kind of shit is that?" Sam joked. Bee flicked Sam with his giant hand and Sam went flying. Fortunately, Bee's other hand was just across the yard waiting to catch him. Sam gasped slightly, but he knew this was just Bee's way of joking around.

"So Bee, do you want to go for a ride or something? I don't have anything to do tonight and I'm bored." Sam whined. He always sounded like a child when he was bored. Of course, Bee agreed right away and transformed back into the yellow Camero before popping his front door open and an invitation for Sam. The two friends drove away laughing and joking around like brothers.

It was a few hours before the two returned home, Sam exhausted and ready for bed. It was around eleven and his early school schedule made him want to go to bed early, even on weekends. He said goodnight to Bee and made his way back up to his room, and went to bed.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Mikaela was slowly walking the painful nine and a half miles to Sam's house. She had been walking for about three hours and she estimated that she was about two or three miles away. She had stopped crying hours ago and was starting to feel strong again.

"I can do this. I'll just tell Sam that my dad kicked me out because I was being a bitch. I deserved it and I'll only stay a few days until I can get myself together. Hopefully he is over our argument today." She told herself this over and over as she continued walking down the road. She forced herself not to think about her father because she knew she would just cry again and she wanted to stay strong. Mikaela never liked crying, she felt it was for losers. So crying for the past two hours of walking didn't really make her feel good about herself. She walked farther until she felt something drop onto her head. She felt her head and noticed that it was wet. Looking up she felt a bunch of raindrops fall onto her face.

"Of course it would rain. That's just my luck." She said out loud to herself. She was frustrated, but strong. She would keep going those couple of miles and make her way to Sam's house. She would be safe there. The rain grew heavier and heavier until it was pouring hard and Mikaela was already drenched. She was freezing as well since she was only wearing a t-shirt and jeans. If she had options, she would call someone to come pick her up. Or find a place to wait inside until the rain stopped. Of course, since her father kicked her out she didn't have her phone with her and since it was about two in the morning, no place was open even if she wanted to wait inside of a building. Mikaela saw a tree a few hundred feet away and started running as fast as she could to it. She reached it and was relieved to see that it had enough branches and leaves to keep most of the rain off of her while she took a short break. She didn't stay long though because she knew if she had time to think about her situation, then she would see how helpless and hopeless it really was. Ten minutes after finding the tree, Mikaela was already walking again in the downpour.

An hour later, Mikaela could see Sam's neighborhood in the distance and she laughed happily to herself. Drenched and cold from head to toe and aching from all of her injuries, plus walking for nine and a half miles, she almost skipped the rest of the way to the Witwicky's household.

She stepped up to the door and took a deep breath for a second to calm herself down. She had never been so happy to be so close to someone who cared about her. She knocked on the door three times loudly. She knew the family was sleeping but she hoped at least one of them was a light enough sleeper to hear her. She waited a few seconds and then tried knocking again. Not until her fifth try at knocking did she hear the door being slowly unlocked and Mr. Witwicky peered his head out.

"What in the world are you trying….oh! Mikaela! I didn't know it was you! Come in, come in! What are you doing out in the rain?" Mr. Witwicky asked her. Mikaela took off her shoes and walked through the front door into the warm house. She saw Mrs. Witwicky at the top of the stairs clutching to the banister looking slightly nervous.

"It's all right Judy. It's Mikaela. Go wake up Sam." Mr. Witwicky told her. Mikaela noticed he had a pan in his right hand and she realized that he was going to use that as a weapon if she had been an intruder. She laughed lightly to herself as Mr. Witwicky wrapped a blanket around her shoulders. The warmth that she had been deprived of for so long made her feel happy again.

"You must be freezing. Why were you out in the rain? You didn't walk here did you? That's almost ten miles!" Mr. Witwicky asked. Mikaela looked away shyly for a second.

"Well yeah, I did. My dad and I got into a fight because I was being rude to him so he kind of kicked me out. I'm sure it will all work out. I just needed somewhere to go." She answered. Mr. Witwicky was about to answer when they heard Sam running down the stairs.

"Mikaela! What's wrong? Are you okay? Why are you all wet?" he ran down the stairs and hugged her tightly. Mikaela just hugged him back, happy that he was speaking to her.

"She walked here from her house. She said she was in a fight with her dad and he kicked her out." Mr. Witwicky explained.

"Yeah, I'm sorry about the timing Sam. And I guess the wetness too." She chuckled. "If I can just stay for a few days and get myself together…"

"Nonsense! You will stay as long as you want! That is a huge deal being kicked out of the house! Are you sure you're all right dear?" Judy asked Mikaela, her eyes full of motherly worrying.

"Honestly, I'm fine. Just a little cold." She said. Sam could tell something wasn't right about the whole situation, but he figured she would talk to him when she was ready.

"Sam, why don't you take her upstairs and let her take a shower so she can warm up? Mikaela you can sleep in the guest room dear." Judy instructed. Mikaela smiled.

"Thank you so much. I really appreciate it." She said. Sam pulled her upstairs and led her to the bathroom. He turned on the light and pulled out a towel for her.

"Here you go. Everything you need is in there. I'll go get you some clothes to change into when you're done. Do you think you need anything else?" Sam asked her. His eyes were full with worry for his girlfriend.

"No I think I'm fine Sam. Thank you." She pulled him in for a hug and then kissed him passionately on the lips. Sam smiled a little before walking away to get the clothes. Mikaela closed the door and stripped off her drenched clothes. She had brand new bruises from the kicking she received from her dad and they were much more painful than usual. Sighing she turned on the shower and stepped in. She didn't realize how cold she really was until she felt the warm water all over her body. It was so relaxing and Mikaela was so tired that she could have fallen asleep right away. She closed her eyes for a few minutes until she heard a knock on the door.

"Mikaela! Can I come in? I have some clothes for you!" Sam yelled through the door.

"Yeah, sure! Come on in!" the door opened and Sam walked in. Even in the situation they were in right now. It was still hot to see Mikaela's clothes wet and on the floor of _his_ bathroom. "Sam you can just put them down. Thank you!" Mikaela said through the shower curtain. He turned red for a second because he thought she had seen him staring at her wet clothes. She was still in the shower though and he quickly pulled himself together.

"There you go." He said as he put them down. "Okay, I'm leaving." He turned and walked out the door and closed it behind him.

Once Mikaela was sufficiently warm and relaxed, she turned the shower off and climbed out. She wrapped the towel around her and searched around for a comb to brush her hair with. Giving up after a few minutes of searching she dried herself off and put on the sweatpants and t-shirt that Sam brought for her.

"They smell just like him." She thought. She hung up the towel and walked out of the bathroom to go ask Sam if he had a comb lying around somewhere. She crept past his parent's room and saw that they were already sleeping in their bed. Reaching Sam's room she knocked lightly on the door and peeked her head in when she received no immediate answer. There he was draped across his bed like he collapsed on top of it. She walked over to him and sat down on the edge of the bed. Forgetting about the comb entirely, she began running her fingers through his hair thinking about how much she really loved him. Even though it was too early to say it, she was pretty sure he felt the same way about her. After a few minutes of playing with his hair she grew tired and glanced at the clock. It read four o'clock in the morning. She looked around and found Sam's blanket lying on the floor at the edge of the bed. She pulled it up and lay down next to him covering them both with the blanket. She kissed Sam on the cheek and quickly fell asleep next to him exhausted from her long day.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Sam woke up around eleven the next morning surprised to see Mikaela sleeping next to him. He tried to remember the events from the night before and vaguely recalled giving Mikaela dry clothes to put on in the bathroom and returning to his room and laying down on his bed. He assumed he fell asleep before Mikaela was even done in the bathroom. Sam gently turned all the way over in bed and watched Mikaela sleep for a few minutes while softly playing with her dark, long, hair. He didn't want to wake her up because she looked so peaceful so he kissed the side of her head and slowly got off the bed as not to make a noise that would disturb her.

Arriving in the kitchen he saw his mother awake, making breakfast for the family like she did every Saturday morning. It looked like pancakes and bacon today and Sam didn't realize how hungry he really was until he smelled the delicious food.

"Good morning Sammy. I'm making you breakfast. How's Mikaela? Is she up yet?" Judy asked her son.

"No she's not. I have a feeling she won't wake up any time soon. She walked a long way last night. I still can't believe it." He answered while sitting at the table waiting for his breakfast. He heard the lawnmower outside and assumed his dad was taking over his Saturday morning chore because of the situation. He was glad his parents were being so helpful with Mikaela. It wasn't like he physically needed their help with her, but just them understanding the situation and being there to talk to was a lot of help.

"That girl is stronger than anyone gives her credit for. She deserves a sleep day. Did you talk to her at all about what exactly happened?" she asked. Sam shook his head no.

"She didn't say anything about it. I don't know. I just feel like something big is going on in her house and she doesn't want to talk about it. I mean its okay that she doesn't want to talk about it now, but I hope she opens up to someone soon. She can't hold it all in for so long, you know?" Judy could tell that Sam was really worried about Mikaela. She was glad her son had found someone that he could love just like she loved her husband.

"I know Sammy, I know." Judy responded as she placed a stack of pancakes in front of Sam. "I'm worried about her too. We need to see if she wants to call her father and see if they can work their problems out. Either over the phone or he can come here if they want. I hate to see families fighting like this. Especially since they're all each other has for family. I'm going to take her shopping too. Maybe later today if she feels up to it. We need to get her some clothes and toiletries if she's going to be staying here even for a couple of days." Sam nodded as he chewed his food.

"I'm sure she'll like that. I know she's not really a sweatpants kind of person, but that's all I had that could possibly fit her." Sam and Judy chuckled lightly. "She was really appreciative though. I can't imagine being in her situation." Judy nodded as Sam finished up his plate. Judy stood to start washing the dishes but Sam stopped her before she could.

"You go get dressed mom. I can take care of the dishes. Dad's already doing the lawn for me so this is the least I can do." Judy smiled.

"You're really growing up into a nice young man Sammy. Thank you." She turned and walked up the stairs to get dressed. Sam took the leftovers from breakfast and put them in the refrigerator. He quickly cleaned the dishes and put them in the dishwasher. He wiped the whole kitchen down and after taking a last look around to make sure he got everything, he walked outside to see if Bee was in the garage. He wasn't in the garage, but it didn't take Sam long to spot him in a field that was behind his backyard. Sam climbed over his backyard fence and went to join Bee who was practicing his defensive moves on trashcans and lawn chairs that he found at the dump a couple of miles down the road. Sam just watched for a few minutes as the large robot jumped and maneuvered himself around acting like the inanimate objects were the most deadly opponents. Bee blasted the last chair across the field and Sam clapped in approval.

"Wow Bee. You're getting good at defensive moves. You're going to be the best guardian ever." Sam exclaimed. Bee gave him a look.

"What do you mean "going to be"?" he asked through his radio.

"Okay, okay, you _are_ the best guardian ever. Happy?" Sam asked. Bee's face lighted up and he danced around like he always did when he was happy.

"I didn't know you felt that way about me." He fake sobbed. Huge blue tears were dripping down his face. Sam avoided the drops knowing if he was hit, he would be drenched.

"I saw Mikaela arrive early this morning. I detected hurt and fear in her emotions. Is everything alright now?" Bee asked Sam. Sam nodded.

"Yeah, she told us her father kicked her out of the house because she talked back to him, I think. I don't know if that is the whole story though. I feel like she's hiding something from me Bee. She hasn't woken up yet and I don't think she will for a while, but I really want to talk to her. I want to hear the whole story, you know?" He told Bee.

"Maybe Mikaela just needs a break from some sort of stress. Perhaps from school?" Bee suggested.

"Maybe, but I'm with her most of the day and I'm pretty sure if something was stressing her out at school, I would be stressed out too, or she would talk to me about it without any problem. I don't know. Maybe I'm just being too protective over her." Sam finally concluded. Bee nodded his head and put a hand across Sam's shoulders. Sam was glad he had people to talk to about his problems, but what he really wanted was to be able to talk to Mikaela and figure out what, if anything, was still going on with her.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Mikaela was at the stove making pasta for dinner. She had just opened the spaghetti box to put into the boiling water when the door slammed open. Dave Banes walked through the door and stomped up to Mikaela. Without saying a word he took the pot of boiling water and threw it onto his daughter. He laughed and laughed as Mikaela fell to the floor and screamed in pain. Dave kicked his daughter and walked away. Mikaela cried out to anyone for help but no one was there. She was alone and blacked out.

Mikaela shot up in bed, breathing hard, trying to come back to reality.

"It was just a dream." She thought. She checked her skin just to be sure and it was still the same skin despite all of the bruising. Catching her breath, Mikaela took a look at the clock which read two o'clock in the afternoon. She rubbed her eyes for a moment, still feeling the effects of the dream. Finally getting her bearings and looking around, she remembered her adventurous night of walking in the rain and being taken care of by Sam. She finally willed herself to climb out of bed and after a quick stop at the bathroom, Mikaela walked down the stairs to find Sam.

She looked all over the bottom floor of the house before giving up and turning on the TV. There wasn't a whole lot on at the moment so she settled on MTV's Top 20 Countdown. She had been watching for almost half an hour when she heard the deck sliding door open and Sam walked into the kitchen. Mikaela stood up.

"Hey stranger, I've been looking all over for you." She told him. Sam was startled for a second but quickly knew it was her and he walked over to her. He hugged her tightly and kissed her as his good morning (or afternoon) greeting.

"Did you sleep okay?" he asked her. She nodded.

"Of course I did. I was next to you." She smiled. Sam rolled his eyes.

"Come on Kaela. How cheesy can you get?" Mikaela laughed and punched him on the arm playfully.

"You're ridiculous. Do you know that?" She teased him. Sam laughed and hugged her again. He picked her up in his hug and fell onto the couch with her. They fell laughing hard and they couldn't stop for a good five minutes. Finally Sam got his act together and stood up helping Mikaela off of the couch also.

"Are you hungry at all? I could cook you something. I'm quite the chef." Sam announced proudly.

"Well in that case, I'm starving." Mikaela said. "What's your specialty Chef?" She asked jokingly.

"Well I can heat up pancakes and bacon my mom made earlier." Sam said.

"That sounds delicious." She giggled. She sat down at the kitchen table and watched Sam pull the pancakes out of the refrigerator and put them in the microwave. Soon after he put the steaming plate in front of her and Mikaela dug in. She finished the huge plate of pancakes in less than ten minutes. She sighed and leaned back in her seat finally feeling full after days of inadequate meals. Sam stared at her for a second.

"Um….wow. You must have been hungry Mikaela. Are you full now?" He asked her.

"Yeah. They were so good." She said. They both laughed. The laughter died down and an awkward silence soon followed. Sam broke it first.

"Hey Mikaela can I ask you a question?" He asked. She nodded feeling a little nervous all of a sudden. Did Sam know about her home situation? Did he hate her for not telling him about it?

"Can you tell me what exactly what happened between you and your father last night? I mean I know you said you mouthed off to him and honestly I can't say I don't believe that, but I just feel like there's something you aren't telling me." Sam said. Mikaela hesitated for a second. Should she tell him the truth now? Is this really the time to do it? After a few seconds Mikaela finally answered.

"Well, my dad and I have been fighting for a few days now. So I came home yesterday and he asked me to have dinner ready for him when he came home from work. So I forgot and he came home and he was mad that I didn't have any food ready for him and he yelled at me. I yelled back and he threw me out." She took a deep breath before continuing. "He told me not to come back." She finished.

"Oh Mikaela. Come here." Sam said. Mikaela stood up and walked around the table to Sam and sat down on his lap. She put her head on his shoulder and a few tears slipped down her face. "I can't imagine how hard this is for you Kaela. I can't believe he kicked you out just for yelling at him. You can stay with us as long as you like. So don't worry about anything okay? You're safe here." Those were the exact words Mikaela needed to hear from him. That she was safe and her father couldn't touch her here. Not with Sam and his family around. She finally felt like she was in a place where she belonged.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Judy Witwicky walked down the stairs into the kitchen and watched as Sam and Mikaela cleaned up the rest of the dishes. She had been upstairs getting ready for the day.

"Mikaela dear. Even though you're kicked out of the house, do you think your father would let you come back just to pick up some clothing? I'm sure you don't really enjoy wearing Sam's clothes." She asked.

"Well, as much as I _love_ wearing Sam's clothes, I think I need to stay away from my father for right now. Going over there would just cause more problems." Mikaela answered.

"Okay then. Well then Sam you're going to have to entertain yourself for the rest of the day because Mikaela and I are going shopping!" Judy clapped her hands excitedly and Sam rolled his eyes.

"Oh. Mrs. Witwicky. Really, you don't have to. I don't want you spending that much money on me." Mikaela tried to explain to her but Judy wouldn't hear any of it.

"Dear please.You are definitely worth it and it's not like it's no fun for me. I get to go shopping with the daughter I never had." She told Mikaela. Mikaela was stunned for a second. She couldn't remember the last time her father had told her that he loved having her as a daughter and now her boyfriend's mother already is welcoming her into the family.

"Well….If you put it that way. Of course I'll go with you." Mikaela smiled. Judy jumped happily again and ran upstairs to go get her purse leaving Sam and Mikaela alone in the kitchen.

"Mikaela….What am I going to do while you're gone?" Sam whined to her. This time Mikaela rolled her eyes.

"I'm sure you can manage. Do something with Bee. Or watch TV or something. Trust me, you'll figure something out." Mikaela told him.

"Ugh. Fine. I guess you're right." Mikaela smiled and kissed him on the lips.

"Of course I am. I'll see you when I get back okay. In decent clothes this time." She told him.

"You don't have to wear any clothes at all really." Sam told her. She smacked him on the arm.

"You're ridiculous Sam Witwicky." She kissed him one more time and then met Judy at the front door of the house.

Judy and Mikaela were walking into the mall to begin Mikaela's mini shopping spree. Mikaela couldn't believe her luck and how nice the whole Witwicky was being to her while she was going through her problems with her father. The two women stopped in a clothing outlet and started picking a few things out for Mikaela to wear. They stayed there for two hours before buying three bags of clothes and then moving on to the next store. Judy stopped outside of the shoe store and told Mikaela to go ahead in while she went to the store next door for a minute. Mikaela agreed and began looking for shoes for herself. She spent a few minutes looking and settled on three pairs, so she sat down and tried them on. As she was trying on the shoes, she heard some whispering a few feet away and glanced up to see if they who it was. She had to do a double take because she couldn't believe that Victoria, her father's girlfriend, and her two teenagers, Alyson and Jake.

"Well, well, well. Isn't it Little Miss Runaway?" Victoria asked her children loudly when she saw Mikaela look up from her shoes. Alyson and Jake laughed at her.

"Mikaela, I just wanted to thank you for the new room. Your father let me have yours and everything in it. Do you know what my favorite thing in your room is Mikaela? It's your jewelry. Especially that diamond necklace. Dave said your geek of a boyfriend gave it to you. I'd give him one thing; he has great taste in diamonds." Alyson laughed at the look Mikaela gave her when she held up the necklace that was around her neck. Mikaela could see that it was the necklace that Sam gave to her for her eighteenth birthday two months ago. Mikaela quickly ran out of the store and began to cry when she knew that Victoria and her children couldn't see her anymore.

"That bitch! I can't believe she took my room, my stuff, my necklace!" The thought of her necklace around her neck made her cry harder. She found a restroom in a department store and sat down on the couch that was provided in it. She stayed there for a half and hour before washing her face and taking a deep breath. All she wanted right now was to go and kick Victoria, Alyson and Jake's asses and then go back to her house and get all of her stuff. Despite this, she still feared for her life and going back to her house wouldn't help that fear whatsoever. She decided she looked okay enough to go and find Judy and then get out of the mall. If she couldn't make Alyson pay for what she did to her, the next best thing was to be held by Sam. She walked out of the department store bathroom and started looking for Judy which didn't take long, because Judy was looking for her too. Judy spotted her across the mall and ran up to her.

"Oh! Mikaela! I was looking all over for you! I found some great shoes in this one store for you, and I found you more shirts, shorts and pants. I found a surprise for you too! Did you find anything at the other shoe store?" She asked excitedly. She was oblivious to the fact that Mikaela had been crying. Mikaela shook her head no.

"Mrs. Witwicky, is it okay if we finish up our shopping trip?" Mikaela asked her. Judy finally saw how Mikaela had been crying and jumped into protective mom mode.

"Mikaela, what happened? Are you okay?" She asked worriedly. Mikaela shook her head no again. A few tears escaped again.

"I saw my dad's girlfriend and her kids. They were being rude. The daughter told me that my dad let her move into my room. She was wearing the necklace Sam got for me for my birthday. I can't believe it. The one day I took it off, I just couldn't see this coming." She was full blown crying again. Judy hugged her tightly.

"Mikaela I'm so sorry. It's not your fault that you took the necklace off. Sam knows that you loved it and that you love him. Even though you haven't told him yet. Sweetheart, it was rude of your father's girlfriend to do that to you, but you have to forget about it. Even though your father still isn't welcoming you back home yet, you have to understand that we love you and you are welcome into our home anytime. We won't get tired of you, especially Sam." Judy told her. Mikaela laughed.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Thank you Mrs. Witwicky." She told Judy.

"You're very welcome dear. And _please_ call me Judy. Mrs. Witwicky makes me feel so old." Judy said. Mikaela laughed again. Judy took Mikaela's hand.

"Come on, let's go home. We can get the rest of your clothes another day. And I can go to Wal-Mart tonight to get you a new toothbrush and hairbrush and anything else you might need. They walked mother and daughter out of the mall with their clothes, on their way back home.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Judy and Mikaela drove home in silence. The whole time Mikaela was contemplating whether or not this was a good time to tell Sam about her problem with her father. She knew Sam knew something was going on. She could tell every time he looked at her that he was trying to figure out why she was nervous about small things and why she was always so tired and hungry. Keeping the secret was taking a toll on her and she wanted to let it out in the open. Each time she thought about how she would tell Sam though, memories about her and her father flashed through her mind. Times when she was younger and everything was right between the two of them. She couldn't betray her father like that. Even after what he had done to her, she still loved him and he was her _father_. But she couldn't just ignore the fact that her father almost killed her and threatened to kill her if he ever saw her again. Her life was in danger but no one knew that except her. She finally made up her mind on what she was going to do when Judy turned onto the Witwicky's street. The car pulled up in front of the house and Mikaela helped Judy carry all of the bags of clothes into the house. They carried the bags up to the guest room where Mikaela supposedly slept last night and set them on the bed. Mikaela thanked Judy again, gave her a hug and then Judy left her alone. Mikaela began taking the clothes out of the bags and putting them in the closet when Sam walked in. Mikaela didn't hear him and when he grabbed her from behind she gasped before realizing it was Sam and smacking him on the arm.

"You idiot!" She yelled at him playfully. This just made Sam chuckle and pull her onto the bed on top of him.

"So." He started. "Did you enjoy shopping with my neurotic mother?" Mikaela smiled.

"Actually it was fun. It was like having the parent I never had." She said.

"You mean a mom you never had. I mean you have a dad." Sam said. Mikaela hesitated. If there was anytime to tell Sam about her situation, now would be it.

"Sam can I tell you something?" She asked him. Sam hugged her tightly and nodded, waiting for her to continue.

"This is it." He thought. "She's finally going to tell me what's bothering her." Mikaela lowered her eyes and took a deep breath. She was about to open her mouth when someone pounded on the bedroom door. Both teenagers jumped from the sudden noise and Sam stood up and opened the door. His father, George, was standing in front of him.

"Sam! You're stupid robot car thing walked all over my backyard and left huge footprints everywhere. Even in the flower bed! I want it out! Now!" he fumed.

"O..o…okay Dad. I'll take care of it, I promise. Just give me a few minutes okay?" He told his father and before George could say anything more, Sam closed the door and walked back to Mikaela. Sam rolled his eyes and sat back down on the bed taking Mikaela's hands in his.

"Okay, sorry about that. Go ahead, I'm listening." Sam told her. Unfortunately, all of the confidence Mikaela had in telling Sam about her father had disappeared and she felt she could no longer talk to him. It wasn't his fault. She just had second thoughts in telling him again and she didn't want to keep the conversation going.

"Um…all I was going to ask was if you could drive me to work tomorrow? I need to be there at 9 and I work until 2. Please?" She pleaded with her eyes for him to forget about what she was really going to talk to him about, but he wasn't going to buy it.

"Of course I'll drive you, but I know that you weren't about to tell me that. Whatever it is Mikaela, I promise I'll help you with it. I don't want you going through anything alone, so I'll be here when you're ready. I love you too much for you to be hurting like this. I can see it, you're way of trying to cover it up can get by anyone but me." Mikaela's eyes widened at the words "I love you". Sam kept talking and Mikaela put a finger to his lips to slience him.

"I love you too Sam. I really do. I understand what you're saying, but _you_ have to understand that I'll tell you when I'm ready, and I'm obviously not ready yet." She kissed him passionately. "Come on, let's go see what Bee did to your backyard." She told him. She took his hand and led him down the stairs, hopefully postponing any other conversations about the subject for a while longer.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Mikaela spent the night in the guestroom and gladly accepted the toiletries that Judy went out and got after dinner that night. That next morning, after having a good night's sleep for the first time in a few days, she woke up at 7:30 and went into the shower right away to be ready for work. After choosing her outfit for her work day (a pair of jeans and Sam's t-shirt that she wore the day before) and getting her hair ready, she looked at the clock and it already said 8:30 on the clock. She finished getting ready quickly and walked out of the room to go downstairs for breakfast. She passed Sam's room and was a little concerned to hear him snoring since he was the one who was driving her to work that morning. She looked in his room and saw him face down in his pillows still deep asleep. Mikaela rolled her eyes and walked over to the edge of the bed. She tapped him on the shoulder a few times trying to wake him up.

"Sam! Sam, wake up! You promised to drive me to work and it's almost time to go!" Sam only rolled over to face away from Mikaela and grunted in his sleep. Mikaela climbed over him and lay down next to him devising her next plan on waking him up. Mikaela put her hand on his cheek and gave him a passionate kiss on the lips. She knew this would do the trick. A few seconds passed and Sam began to kiss her back finally opening her eyes. They broke apart and Sam opened his eyes but his head fell back on the pillow.

"You really know how to wake a guy up." He leaned into the crook of her neck. "And you smell so good today. So clean." He said smelling her neck sending shivers down her spine.

"Thanks but you have to get up Sam. I have to be at work in half and hour and you haven't even gotten out of bed yet. Please Sam, I can't be late." She pleaded with him.

"I'm coming, I'm coming, don't worry. Go ahead downstairs and eat something and I'll be down in five minutes." He told her. He kissed her one more time on the neck and she walked out of the room and down the stairs. Sam quickly put on some jeans and a clean t-shirt and brushed his hair. He went into the bathroom and brushed his teeth and his face. He still felt sleepy but at least he was clean. He grabbed his wallet on his dresser and his keys and walked down the stairs to get some breakfast before he had to leave. He saw Mikaela at the table eating a bagel and he sat down next to her without saying a word. Mikaela knew Sam wasn't a morning person and she knew talking to him would be the worst choice in the world. She passed him and bagel and he grunted "thanks" to her before looking for the cream cheese. Mikaela was surprised she even got that out of him and smiled at him before turning back to her bagel. She finished quickly and stood up to put her plate away and help clean up some of the other breakfast dishes. Sam stood up soon after that with half a bagel still in his mouth reaching for his keys in his pocket. Mikaela followed him out the door and went to the garage to get Bee to transform into a car so that he could drive them to the repair shop where Mikaela worked. When Bee saw Mikaela he got so excited that he picked her up and hugged her tight, almost cutting off her air supply.

"Bee! I missed you too but can you please stop squeezing me? I can't breathe!" Mikaela squeaked out. Bee quickly put her down and apologized before transforming into the yellow Camaro. Sam and Mikaela climbed in and pulled out of the garage and onto the road. The seven minute ride to the repair shop was silent of course and Mikaela almost fell asleep because of how soothing the ride was and how quiet the inside of the car was. Bee pulled up in front of the repair shop and Mikaela opened the door.

"Wait, come here." Sam said. He pulled her in for a kiss. "I'm sorry I'm not a morning person. What time do you need me to pick you up?" He asked her.

"I'm done at 2. And really, it's no problem." She told him. He kissed her one more time.

"Okay, I'll be here. I love you. And don't kiss any guys with hot bodies and really cool cars okay?" He told her. She laughed.

"I won't, don't worry. I have my own hot guy right here in his cool car. And I love you too. I'll see you later." She climbed out of the car and walked into the shop. Sam waited until she was safely inside before pulling away.

Mikaela walked into the shop as she heard Bee pull away from the driveway. She stopped by her boss's office and signed in and began working on the cars that came in the night before. She made it all the way to one o'clock before any guy hit on her when he brought his car in. The guy was as tall as Sam was and was muscular but not too muscular. He had dark brown hair and green eyes. His name was Brayden and he had a lot of confidence that day after taking a look at Mikaela. As she bent over his car hood working on the engine, she could feel his eyes staring at her. Feeling uncomfortable, Mikaela stood up and glared his way. Smoothly, Brayden looked away as if he had never been looking at her. Many times this happened and Mikaela was fed up with it.

"I'll be right back." She told him. She disappeared in the main office and went to go get one of her coworkers to ask if they would continue working on the car because she could no longer do it. Normally she would have taught that guy a lesson but she was still sore from the bruises on her and she didn't want to have any more problems than what she had right now. Mikaela sat down on a chair in the office and took a small break with a cup of coffee. She was just about to take another sip of the drink when the bell on top of the door rang signaling that someone had come into the office. Mikaela looked up and saw no one else but her father staring back at her.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

All Mikaela could think was "Oh shit, Oh shit, Oh shit" as she backed up in the manager's office to get away from her father. His eyes narrowed on her as she moved. She couldn't believe he was here. Was he following her? Did he know that she was staying at Sam's house? Did he stop at their house already looking for her? A crazy amount of questions flooded her mind in a split second.

"Why sweetheart, why so nervous? I was just going to give you a hug. I apologize for what happened between us back at our house. I want it to go back to normal just like it was before." He told her. A smile crossed his lips and Mikaela couldn't decide whether or not he was being sincere. Dave reached his arms out to pull Mikaela in and give her a hug and Mikaela hesitated before slowly coming towards her father. His arms wrapped around her as she awkwardly stood against him waiting for the hug to be over.

"Come on sweetheart. Hug your father." He instructed her. She lightly picked her arms up and wrapped them around him. In a split second, her arms were in a totally different position wrapped around her back. Her father was pulling her arms harder and harder wanting her to scream. Mikaela held back but the pain was excruciating. He let go of one arm and Mikaela tried to pull away but when she did he bent her wrist back and Mikaela heard something crack. This time Mikaela did scream until her father slapped her across the face. Tears were streaming down her cheeks but Mikaela kept quiet. Her father threw her to the floor and began kicking her on her already sore bruises from the last incident. A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door and Dave panicked. He saw the large window that was at the other end of the office and ran toward it, yanked it open and climbed outside; leaving Mikaela to get off of the floor and see who possibly saved her life. It was Manny, one of her coworkers who had heard the commotion in the office and decided to see what was going on.

"Mikaela! Are you alright? Did you hurt your wrist?" She nodded yes, in too much pain to answer with words. Manny ran over to her and told her to sit down and relax for a minute.

"Is there anyone you want me to call? I think someone should take you to the hospital, your wrist looks broken. I'd take you but I still have a four hour shift." He told her. Mikaela finally got her voice back.

"Can you pass me the phone over there? I'll call Sam. He's coming right now for me anyway." He quickly reached over on the desk and grabbed the phone that was lying on it. Mikaela dialed Sam's number by heart and waited for him to answer. On the third ring she heard him pick up and answer.

"Hello?" He said. A little confusion was in his voice because he didn't recognize the number on his phone.

"Sam? Hey it's me." She started. Sam already knew something was going on. Her voice was different.

"What's wrong?" He asked, worried about his girlfriend. Mikaela almost smiled at how well Sam knew her.

"After you pick me up, you need to take me to the hospital. I think I broke my wrist." She told him. There was silence on the other end.

"Sam?" She didn't know if he hung up on her.

"Stay right where you are. Don't move. I'm coming in to get you in five minutes okay?" He told her, his voice serious with worry.

"Yeah." She whispered nervous Sam was mad at her. The phone clicked ending the conversation. The five minutes passed by quickly and Mikaela heard footsteps quickly moving into the repair shop and a voice asking if anyone knew where Mikaela was. Manny pointed him in the right direction and seconds later Sam walked into the office.

"Mikaela." He said relief drowning in his voice. He walked over to her and tenderly pulled her wrist away from her body. He looked at it quickly and agreed with her that he thought it was broken. He helped her stand and even though she insisted that she could walk on her own, he held onto her elbow all the way to Bee and helped her into the car. The ride to the hospital was quick and silent as Sam was concentrating on getting there as quickly as Bee would let him. The ride took about five minutes and Sam found a parking spot and had Mikaela out of the car faster than anyone. Entering through the emergency room door he quickly helped her up to the front desk where there was a nurse watching them walk in.

"Hi, my girlfriend hurt her wrist. We think it's broken." He told her. She acknowledged him and gave him the appropriate forms to fill out and advised them that it would only be a few minutes and to wait until they were called. They easily found seats in the waiting area since there were only three people already there.

"Mikaela you have to answer these questions. I don't know all the answers they need." He set the clipboard down on her lap and handed her the pen that came with it. Before Mikaela could finish all of the meaningless questions the nurse called them to come back and put them in a room so they could wait for a doctor to examine Mikaela. Mikaela sat on the bed provided and Sam sat in a chair next to her. He held her hand but didn't say a word as they waited. Mikaela was beginning to get uncomfortable and was about to say something to Sam to break the awkward silence when there was a knock on the door and the doctor walked in.

"Mikaela Banes?" he asked. Mikaela and Sam both nodded and the doctor walked further into the room holding onto the clipboard Mikaela had just filled out. "I see you think you broke your wrist. What happened?" Mikaela hesitated. What could she say? She didn't think of any excuse beforehand like she usually does because she was distracted by the way Sam wasn't exactly speaking to her like usual.

"Um…well…" She started.

"She was riding her motorcycle and went around a curve in the road and her bike tipped over. She landed on her wrist and we think it's broken." Sam told the doctor. The doctor looked at him for a second and looked at Mikaela who nodded. The doctor sighed lightly and wrote something down on the clipboard before pulling his own chair over to the bed, sitting down and picking up Mikaela's wrist. He looked at it, pressing on certain areas and asking if she was in any pain. After a few minutes he set her wrist down.

"I'm going to take you down for a CT scan. This will tell us if your wrist is broken and if it isn't, it will tell us if you have a sprain and how bad it is. So come with me now and we'll put you in. Sir, it will take about twenty minutes to complete the test so you will have to wait in the waiting room right outside. I'll come and get you as soon as she's done.' He told Sam.

"Okay, that's fine." Sam said. The doctor took Mikaela and Sam followed them out into the waiting room and sat down as they went through some double doors to where the CT scan was located. He pulled out his cell phone and decided to let his parents know what was going on and what time he thought they would be home. Of course, his parents wanted to come over as soon as they could and Sam knew it would be better if they were here anyway. He agreed and told his parents to meet him in the emergency waiting room when they could come. Sam checked his phone for the time and saw that he had fifteen minutes at least until Mikaela should come out again. That's only if they were running on time and Sam could pretty much guarantee that they weren't. He sat back in his chair and closed his eyes for a few minutes thinking about Mikaela. He knew someone else did this to her and the only people who were working at the repair shop were Manny, Tyce and Drew. So it had to be one of them who had hurt her. It bugged Sam that he had to figure that out for himself and Mikaela still didn't think she could trust him enough with something like that. A few minutes later Sam heard someone come into the waiting room.

"Sam Witwicky?" They called. Sam's eyes popped open and he stood up raising his hand slightly to let them know that it was him that they were looking for. The woman walked over to him and shook his hand. Sam could see from her badge that her name was Melissa and that she was from social services.

"Um, is something wrong with Mikaela?" Sam asked, very confused.

"Sam, why don't you come with me into this room over here? We have a few things to talk about." Sam walked behind her as she led him to a room that had a desk and two chairs. Melissa sat behind the desk and instructed Sam to sit in the other chair.

"Is Mikaela okay? I want to see her." He told Melissa.

"Sam I've been asked to come and speak with you because Mikaela has shown some signs of physical and mental abuse." She told Sam. Sam had a look of shock on his face.

"Do you know who it is?" He asked quietly. Melissa hesitated.

"Sam, there are signs that show that _you_ are the one abusing Ms. Banes."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Sam felt worse than he had ever felt in his entire life. Worse than when he found out that Santa Clause and the Tooth Fairy weren't real. Worse than when he was told he was the only savior to a nation of alien robots. Worse than when he and Mikaela broke up for about two weeks because of a miscommunication. He couldn't fathom the fact that someone thought that not only could he possibly be the reason the woman he loved was hurting, but that he had done it out of anger and hatred for her. That wasn't him at all. He loved her with all of his heart and he would _never_ hurt her. Not even by accident.

This is what he had explained to Melissa countless times and then to his parents when they had arrived only minutes after he had received the news. As of right now, Mikaela wasn't aware of the current situation and had been put in an examination room to be looked at. Apparently during the CT scan her shirt had been caught in part of the machine and one of the doctors who had helped her had seen the multiple black and blue bruises on her stomach and back. They called social services and Sam was number one on the list of possible abusers. Mostly because he so obviously covered up for Mikaela and said that she fell off of her motorcycle. The doctor could tell he made that up off of the top of his head and the bruises confirmed that. Sam was forbidden to go see Mikaela because of his possible dangerous behavior and therefore he could not get Mikaela to tell them that he wasn't the one who had caused all of her suffering. Even the police had gotten involved and were questioning Sam and his parents to confirm their false suspicions.

Mikaela sat in the patient room terrified of the situation she was in. She knew she should've gone home a long time ago. Her wrist had indeed been fractured and she had a cast on it. Mikaela remembered the situation that had occurred in the CT scan room. All of the doctors had seen her bruises all over her stomach and back. They had even gasped loudly before helping her with her shirt and sending her into this room. The last thing Mikaela wanted was for them to find out that her father was the one responsible and bring him into the hospital. Not only did she not want him in jail again, but she didn't want to be that close to him either. He had tricked her and she would never trust him again. She also didn't want Sam and his parents to find out about the abuse from someone else other than her. They had been so good to her and she owed it to them to explain the entire reason why she came to their house in the first place.

Sam was trying to explain to a police officer and his parents at the same time that he did notice a long time ago that something was wrong with Mikaela but he talked to her and they decided that she would tell him when she was ready. He thought that as long as she was staying with his family, she would be safe and therefore, not telling him right away wouldn't hurt her.

"Son, do you have any idea who might have done this to her then?" the officer asked him. He was fed up with the kid's excuses and was ready to take him downtown as of this moment. Unfortunately, the law was more patient and if he didn't have enough evidence to cuff him, he couldn't put him behind bars.

"All I know is that she called me on my cell when I was driving over to pick her up from work. She work's in a Tyce's Repair Shop. She told me on the phone that as soon as I picked her up, she needed me to take her to the hospital. I told her to stay where she was and I would be there in a few minutes. I came in and she was in the manager's office holding her wrist. The only people there were Manny, Drew and Tyce, the manager." Sam told the officer. "I don't understand why I can't see Mikaela. As soon as I talk to her, we'll fix this whole thing. She'll tell you who did it to her." Sam said.

"Son, we have someone questioning her right now. If your two stories match, we'll knock you off of the list of possible suspects and you can be on your way." The officer told him. Sam sighed and leaned back in his chair.

"Well do you know how much longer that's going to be?" George asked the officer. The officer stood up.

"I'll go check to see how it's going. It'll probably be only a few more minutes." He said. Sam nodded as he left to go check.

Mikaela was being questioned by another police officer in the room she was put in over an hour ago. They were asking her questions like "What exactly happened to your wrist?" and "Can you give us the name of the person who did this to you?" Mikaela found the latter question especially hard to answer. There was a long pause and she was going to answer her truthfully when there was a knock on the door and another police officer walked in.

"I finished questioning her friend. We need to see if their stories match now." He told his coworker. She nodded and stood up. Something clicked in Mikaela's head and she finally understood why she had been there for so long.

"Wait! You think _Sam_ did this to me? Why? He's the last person ever in the world to hurt me. Even by accident." She told them.

"Mikaela, if Sam isn't the one who hurt you, then you have to tell us who did. It's the only way to let Sam go." The police officer told her. Mikaela began to cry.

"It was my father!" She cried. "He has been abusing me for months! Ever since he was released from jail. Almost every night he beats and kicks me because I'm worthless as a daughter. He tells me that. I don't want him to be back in jail, but I don't want Sam in trouble even more." She finished and looked at the officers. They were looking at her sympathetically.

"Dear, were going to help you okay? But the only way you can get better is if your father pays the price. Do you want to see Sam now?" The officer's asked her. Still crying she nodded her head. The officer's left the room and Mikaela had a sense of lightness on her. She had finally told someone that her father was the cause of her bruises. But then her stomach dropped suddenly.

"I didn't tell Sam yet. What if he refuses to even look at me after what I had put him through?" Dread filled her as she anxiously waited for Sam to come into her room.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Sam looked up from his chair as the police officer came back with another one close behind.

"Son, you're free to go. She told us who was abusing her and we're going to get a warrant for his arrest and to search his house." He told Sam. Sam's eyes lit up.

"So I can go see her?" he asked. They both nodded as they asked Sam's parents to sign some forms allowing them and Sam to be contacted if needed and where they would be located. Sam jumped out of his chair almost knocking his mother over who was sobbing with joy that her little boy wasn't a felon.

"Which room is she in?" He asked.

"215 son. She's a little shaken up so be gentle with her." Sam listened as nodded but he knew Mikaela better than anyone and he would know if he had to be gentle with her or not. He didn't need a police officer telling him how to treat his girlfriend. He ran as fast he could to room 215 which was just down the hall. He took a deep breath before reaching up to knock on the door. He had to admit he was a little nervous for some reason. Not because he didn't want to see Mikaela, he just didn't want to see her in any other way than when she was happy and fun to be around. It scared him to think that on the other side of the door she was terrified of someone who was hurting her. He couldn't take it any longer and knocked on the door three times. There wasn't an answer so he opened the door and saw her sitting on the bed, cross legged, with red eyes. She had stopped crying but it seemed like she was going to start again any second now.

"Kaela" Sam said. He walked right up to her and pulled her into a long, tight hug that was much needed by both of them. They sat there for a few minutes without speaking, just holding each other. Finally Sam broke the silence.

"Who is he?" He asked her.

"My dad." She choked out. She was tired of keeping it in and since the police already knew, Sam should at least be the next one to know.

"Are you serious? I thought it was someone from Tyce's" He questioned.

"He came into Tyce's while I was working. I was in the office and he came right in and said he wanted me to forgive him. He hugged me for a moment but it was like he snapped or something. He pulled my arms around and then broke my wrist. He kicked me a few times too but this has been going on since he was released from jail." She told him.

"Mikaela, I'm so sorry. I can't believe I didn't see it." He told her. Tears were pricking his eyes as he tried to picture Mikaela for months feeling unsafe everytime she went inside of her home. "Can I see?" He asked. Mikaela knew what he was talking about. She pulled away from him and lifted her shirt up to expose her stomach and all of the bruises that were on it. Sam's mouth dropped open in shock. She flipped around and showed him her back too. All Sam kept saying was "Mikaela" and "I can't believe it." She pulled her shirt back down and lay down on the bed. Sam cradled her head in his lap and lovingly played with her hair.

"What did they say they were going to do to him?" She asked Sam.

"They said they were getting a warrant for his arrest and a search warrant too." Sam told her. She choked out a sob.

"I really thought he had changed. He even told me he was going to try harder to be my father when he came back a few months ago. I don't know what happened." She flipped over in the bed and hid her face in her pillow. Sam rubbed her back lightly not having an answer for her. A knock on the door interrupted them and Sam's parents walked through the door.

"Mikaela, they want to keep you overnight for observation and to protect you as well. If your father finds out that you told someone about his problem, no one is sure how he would react." Both Mikaela and Sam had a surprised look on their faces.

"Who told you it was her father?" Sam asked.

"The police." She answered simply. "They've gotten a search warrant and their arresting your father right now Mikaela. Honey, I'm so sorry this happened to you. We all are. And we just want you to know that whatever happens to you throughout this, you'll always have us to fall back on." Judy told her. This made Mikaela begin to cry again but this time with tears of happiness.

"Thanks Judy." She whispered through her tears. Sam hugged her again for about the thousandth time in the past ten minutes.

"Well, your father and I are going to leave soon. We took care of all of the paperwork. We asked how long you were allowed to stay Sam and they said visiting hours are over in about half an hour. So you can stay until then but we are going to expect you home by nine, okay?" She told Sam.

"Yeah. I'll be home." He said, discouraged he couldn't stay with Mikaela all night. Both Judy and George hugged the two kids and then left the hospital room. Sam and Mikaela lay in the bed holding each other until the half hour was up. It took him ten extra minutes to say goodbye to Mikaela and finally left the room after Mikaela insisted she wanted him to go home and that she was alright. Sam arrived home and immediately went to his room without speaking to his parents. A sudden wave of anger fell over him as he thought about Mikaela and her father and their new relationship with each other. Sam vowed to himself that he would never let another person hurt Mikaela ever again. With that thought comforting him slightly, he fell into a restless sleep that could only be calmed by a certain girlfriend sleeping next to him.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Sam woke up early the next morning, quickly got dressed and went downstairs to eat breakfast. Judy was in the kitchen making breakfast for him.

"Good morning Sammy." She told him. He grunted a "hello" before sitting down and shoveling food in his mouth. Judy was shocked at how fast he was eating.

"Sam! Slow down! Why are you in such a hurry?" She asked him. He stared at her with a look that said "Are you serious?"

"Mom! I'm going to visit Mikaela at the hospital. Where did you think I was going?" Judy gave him a look.

"Samuel. You have school today. Did you forget?" She told him.

"Honestly," he thought "I did".

"No." He told her. Judy rolled her eyes. "I just thought my loving mother would let me see my hurting girlfriend until she feels like herself again." Judy thought for a minute.

"Nice try Sam. But you're going to school. Your father and I will pick up Mikaela from the hospital and you'll see her as soon as you come home." Sam was about to protest but quickly changed his mind by the look his mother was giving him. He sighed, finished his breakfast and grabbed his school stuff before heading out the door. A few minutes later he pulled up in front of the school and headed into the school, not eager at all to sit through the school day.

Meanwhile, Mikaela was just waking up in the hospital and found her room to be empty which didn't surprise her. She knew Sam would have stayed the whole night if he could but with both his parents and her telling him to go home and get some rest, he had no chance. She also knew that if he couldn't stay the whole night, he most likely woke up really early, forgetting that it was Monday morning, and was about to head out to the hospital to see her wake up but was stopped, probably by his mother, and was told to go to school. Mikaela didn't want Sam to fall behind in school, but it would have been nice to see him right when she woke up. Stretching slightly, she sat up in her bed and pushed the nurse button like she was told to do when she woke up in the morning by the head nurse last night. Half a minute later a nurse rushed in and drew the curtains for Mikaela. The sun shown brightly through the window and brought Mikaela's spirit up a little.

"Good morning dear. The doctor told me you will be able to go home at around lunch time. I'll bring your breakfast in a couple minutes. Did you need anything else?" Mikaela said no. "Oh! And there are a few detectives here to talk to you. If you're ready, I'll bring them in."

"Sure. They can come in." Mikaela told her. The nurse smiled and then left to go get the police officers. Two detectives walked in seconds later and sat down in the chairs in the room.

"Good morning Mikaela. How did you sleep?" One of them asked her.

"Okay. Did you find my father?" She wanted to get right to the point and find out what happened while she was sleeping.

"Yes. He was arrested last night along with another woman who was in the house with him."

"Victoria, right?" Mikaela asked. She was kind of glad Victoria was getting in trouble for this as well, even though she wasn't quite sure why she would be in trouble. "Why was she arrested? She didn't abuse me."

"She witnessed the abuse and refused to say anything about it. We even interrogated her for a few hours, but she stood by your father and refused to say anything about it. So we had to arrest her and keep her in jail too. Today the bail will be set by the court judge and the court date will be set also. It will probably be in a few months. Mikaela, we need your help if your father is going to get the punishment he deserves." The officer said.

"Okay." Mikaela said slowly. "What exactly do you need?" She asked.

"We need to take pictures of the bruises you have on your stomach and back. We'll take those in a minute. But we need to ask you for something else. Keep in mind, you can think about this for a while if you need to. We don't need an answer right away okay?" Mikaela nodded her head, waiting for him to continue. "We need you to testify, in court, against your father. That is the only surefire way we can know we did everything in our power to make sure your father gets what he deserves." Mikaela didn't say anything for a minute.

"I need to think about it. I'm not sure yet." Mikaela told them. The detectives understood.

"Of course. We'll give you time to decide. Since you'll be going home today, we'll give you our numbers and when you come to a decision, you can call us and let us know alright?" The detective watched as Mikaela nodded her head. "Sweetheart, if you let us take the pictures now, we'll be out of your hair until you make your decision, okay?" Mikaela nodded again.

"Okay, my partner is going to take the pictures for us." The first detective walked out of the room and Mikaela looked a little confused. The female detective stood up with the camera in her hand.

"Okay sweetheart, I'm going to need you to take off your hospital gown so we can get the full extent of the bruises." Mikaela hesitated for a second before pulling off her gown and standing in front of the detective in her underwear, hoping this would go by very quickly. The detective took a few pictures, told her to turn around and took a few more. After checking to make sure the pictures turned up well on the digital camera, she allowed Mikaela to put the gown back on and sit down in bed.

"Did you have any questions for me before I go?" The detective asked her.

"No, I think I'm okay." She told her. They said their goodbyes and the detective left the room. Mikaela had a few minutes to think to herself.

"I guess I really should testify against my father. I know it's what's best for me. I don't know if I can do it though. Do I have to sit near him? Will he hear everything I have to say? Will he talk to me? What if he finds me before the trial even begins?" She began over thinking things and working herself up when there was a knock on the door and the nurse came in again holding her breakfast tray.

"Is everything alright dear?" Mikaela looked up and nodded quickly. She didn't want the nurse to think anything was wrong and perhaps delay her release time that afternoon. The nurse smiled and set the breakfast tray down in front of her. Mikaela looked at her breakfast and couldn't help but laugh. She had heard that the food in hospitals wasn't the best, but she didn't imagine she would ever be given food that looked inedible. There were scrambled eggs that looked like rubber, bacon that was cold and hard, and the orange juice that she was given was a color she didn't know that an orange could be. She thanked the nurse and watched carefully as she left the room and then attempted to eat the mess in front of her. Gagging on only the first bite, Mikaela pushed the plate away from her and stood up. Looking at the clock it read 10:30. She only had about another hour and a half in the hospital. She decided she would brush her teeth and hair and get her stuff together as much as she could so she could get out right on time.

In the bathroom, Mikaela brushed her teeth and hair which made her feel one hundred times better. She did not approve, however, of her reflection in the mirror. She had always been a slightly insecure person about her looks. She knew it was silly but she felt like she always needed to look at herself and make sure she passed her own inspection before anyone else saw her. Every time she would tell people this they would laugh and tell her she was ridiculous. Every person told her that except Sam. Of course, he was the one person in the entire world who would understand her insecurities and instead of make fun of her for it, he would try to counteract them by telling her she was beautiful in every way. Just thinking about that now made her feel more comfortable with herself and more eager to leave the hospital and see Sam.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

About fifteen minutes after Mikaela returned from her bathroom, Judy and George walked into her room. After a few hugs and "good mornings", Judy got right down to business.

"Mikaela, the nurse told us that you could be released at around 12 after the doctor talks to you. I heard there were detectives in here earlier though. What did they want?" She asked Mikaela.

"Well they came to tell me that they arrested my dad and his girlfriend. He's going to go to court today to have his bail set and his court date decided. They also took pictures of my bruises because they said it would be good evidence for the trial. They asked me something else too." Mikaela told them.

"Well what was it?" George questioned her.

"They want me to testify against my dad in court. They said it would be the only way they knew they had done everything they could to give him the punishment he deserves." Judy's face changed suddenly.

"Well, what do you think you're going to do?" She asked her.

"I'm pretty sure I'm going to testify. I just want to talk to the detectives a little more about what exactly I have to do. I've changed my mind about my father. I want him to get the punishment he deserves. He needs to see how much damage he did." She told them.

"Mikaela, honey, we are so proud of you and your decision. We know it's going to be tough but we're going to stick by you. We'll help you through all of it." Mikaela stood up and hugged Judy tightly. George rubbed her shoulder gently.

The rest of the morning was spent with the three of them talking about things that would keep Mikaela's mind off of her dad. Judy and George shared stories about Sam when he was younger and most made Mikaela laugh so hard that she was crying. Time flew by and before they knew it, it was almost 12 o'clock and Mikaela's doctor was doing one more final check on her wrist and bruises. Luckily, Mikaela never suffered any more serious injuries from the bruises and the doctor approved of her checking out of the hospital right on time. Judy helped her collect her few belongings that she had brought to the hospital and they happily climbed into their car to drive home.

For the next couple of hours, Judy made Mikaela rest in her room even though Mikaela was really fine physically. Mikaela had found Sam's I-pod in his room and listened to it, laughing at some of the songs he had on it. Sam was speeding down the road eager to get home and see Mikaela. He pulled Bee up into the driveway and jumped out of the car as fast as he could.

He opened the door to the house and almost ran into his mother who was coming down the stairs.

"Sam! Slow down! I know you're in a hurry but you're going to kill someone or yourself!" Sam did slow down slightly but continued his rampage up the stairs and into Mikaela's room. He saw her on the bed listening to his I-pod. He jumped on top of the bed like a little kid waking up his parents on Christmas morning. Mikaela was surprised but happy to see him. She opened her mouth to say something but Sam cut her off with a long, overdue kiss. She wrapped her arms around his neck and smiled at him as they pulled away from each other.

"I missed you way too much today Mikaela. I don't think I can be that long away from you at a time." He told her sincerely. She laughed lightly.

"I agree. Really, I don't ever want to be away from you for more than two minutes. Yeah, I think I can handle two minutes." She told him. He kissed her again and fell over next to her on the bed. She rested her head on top of his shoulder still holding the I-pod in her hand.

"What are you listening to?" He asked her.

"Never Say Never." She said. "I love this song." She closed her eyes and listened to the song with Sam.

"Yeah, it's a good one." He told her. They sat together for a while before Mikaela suddenly remembered that she wanted to tell Sam about the trial and her dad.

"Oh, Sam. I wanted to tell you something." She told him. He opened his eyes and looked warily at her. She almost laughed and brushed her hand across his cheek.

"Don't worry, it's nothing bad. Two detectives came into the hospital today and told me that they arrested my father. They want me to testify against him in court. I think I want to do it." She waited to see what his reaction was.

"Mikaela, whatever you decide, I will be behind you the entire way. It must have taken a lot of thought to come to that decision. I know you thought about it and I agree with you. It's going to be hard but I'll help you as much as I can. What did the detectives say to do?" He told her. She kissed him quickly before answering.

"They said to call them when I make a decision and that they'll go from there. I think I'll call them tomorrow, they said I had a little while to decide." She relaxed again into Sam's arms. Sam kissed the top of her head and they sat together for the rest of the afternoon. Judy finally called them down to dinner at around 6 o'clock. They walked down the stairs together, entered the kitchen and sat down at the table. Judy served them some spaghetti before they all sat down and began their meal. Ten minutes into it, there was a knock on the door. Everyone exchanged confused looks before George stood up and went to answer it. Standing on the door step were the two detectives that had talked to Mikaela that morning and the social worker, Melissa, who had talked to Sam when he was thought to be abusing Mikaela. Melissa spoke first.

"Good evening George. We're sorry to bother you at this hour, but we have some serious news we have to discuss with you and Mikaela." George blinked for a second but then stepped aside letting them enter the house.

"Mikaela!" George called. "You have a few visitors." A few seconds later Mikaela appeared followed closely by Sam and Judy.

"What's going on George?" Judy asked him. He shrugged his shoulders. They walked into the living room and took a seat before anyone started talking. Melissa started.

"Mikaela, you know that your father has officially been arrested. His bail has been set and he can not pay it, so he will be in jail until the court date which is in three months. Your father has been named your guardian until you reach age 18. Since you have just turned 17 two months ago, you are still under his guardianship. Unfortunately, because of the situation, he obviously can no longer be your guardian." Melissa started.

"Well that's not a problem. Mikaela is staying with us." Sam told her.

"Sam, I wish it were that easy. Mikaela's dad signed a paper today stating that he doesn't want Mikaela to live with you. He has that right since he is her father. He requested that Mikaela be put in foster care until after the court decision." All four of their mouth's dropped open, their eyes were wide.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

"What! You're supposed to be helping her! Not sending her away to foster care!" Sam yelled at Melissa.

"Sam! Sam, calm down. Now you know Melissa has no say in where Mikaela's dad wants her to stay. We can work this out, can't we?" Judy directed her question to Melissa and the two detectives.

"The only thing we can do is wait until the court date. If Mikaela's father is sentenced to more than a year in prison, Mikaela can choose to either live on her own, or be set up for adoption. Your family can try to adopt her if that is your wish, or you can set up another family to adopt her. But for now, she is going to have to stay in foster care for a few months." Melissa said sadly. Sam grabbed Mikaela's hand tightly.

"When does she have to leave?" He asked quietly.

"Legally, she has to leave as soon as possible. We can drive her to her house to gather her belongings and then drop her off at the facility." One of the detectives spoke up.

"So she can't even stay for one more night?" Sam asked. The detectives shook their heads no. Mikaela had been silent this whole time. Sam had just noticed.

"Are you okay?" He asked her. She ignored his question.

"Are you sure I only have to be there until the court date? Nothing is going to change right?" Her voice was breaking slightly.

"Yes, we're positive." Melissa told her. Mikaela nodded.

"Then I'll go. What other choice do I have?" She told everyone. Sam looked at her while she looked down at her lap.

"Well, since that was easier than I thought it would be, would you all like to accompany Mikaela and I to her house and then to the foster care facility?" The three Witwickys nodded their heads eagerly. They all walked out of the house leaving their meals happy to be with Mikaela for a few more minutes. It was as if Sam and Mikaela's hands were glued together permanently since they refused to let go of each other. They rode the whole way to Mikaela's house in silence and right before they got out of the car, Melissa stopped them.

"Mikaela, we'll give you half an hour to get all of your things together. I'm sorry it couldn't be longer, but we're short on time. We brought you three duffel bags to fill. Unfortunately, that's all you can take with you. I'll wait out here." She told her.

"Okay." Mikaela said before walking out of the car with Sam and the three duffel bags. They walked up to the door and open it, surprised to find it unlocked. The door squeaked slightly as it opened and Mikaela looked around at the place she had been abused for the last few months of her life. She was happy to see that it mostly looked exactly how she had left it but after seeing Victoria and her children at the mall, she was nervous to see her room and what had been done to it. She led Sam up the stairs and took a deep breath before turning the doorknob to open it and see her room.

"Oh my god" was all Mikaela could say as she looked around at what used to be her bedroom. All of her pictures on her walls and dresser had been torn down. By looking in the drawers, she could see that the clothes inside of them were no longer hers. There were three huge garbage bags in the corner of the room and as Mikaela expected, they had all of her belongings inside of them.

"Why did your dad get rid of all of your stuff Mikaela?" Sam asked her.

"It wasn't my dad. It was Alison." She told him.

"Who's Alison?" Mikaela realized she forgot to even tell Sam about Victoria and her family along with meeting them at the mall.

"She's my dad's girlfriend's daughter. She's the same age as me and when I left, my dad let her move into my room and I guess she got rid of all of my stuff. Sam I have to tell you something though." She made him sit down on the bed.

"I saw Victoria, Alison and Jake, Victoria's son, at the mall when I went shopping with your mom. That was when Alison told me that she had moved into my room. But she told me something else too. Remember the necklace you gave me for my birthday?"

Sam nodded. "When I talked to Alison, she was wearing it. She refused to give it back and said it was hers now that she had my room and all of my stuff. I don't think I can get it back Sam. I'm so sorry." She was crying now. Sam hugged her tightly.

"Mikaela, don't worry. I'm not mad at you for anything. I am pissed off at this Alison though. If I ever meet her, I swear I'm going to get your necklace back. It belongs to you and no one else Mikaela." She smiled up at him as he wiped her tears away.

"Thank you Sam. I love you." She told him and then kissed him lightly on the lips. Sam smiled and then helped her stand up.

"I love you too. Don't worry we're going to get through this together. Now, since all of your stuff is already bagged, we don't really need to do anything do we?" He asked her. Mikaela looked around her room and saw that Alison did a really good job of getting rid of anything that belonged to Mikaela.

"I guess not. I just want to look through the bags really quickly to make sure I didn't miss anything. And then I'm going to get my toothbrush and stuff and then we can leave." She told him. He helped her open and look through all three bags before Mikaela was satisfied that at least most of her stuff was inside of them. She even found her phone and charger lying on the bottom of the bag which made her happy. At least now she had some means of communication with other people.

"Okay. I guess it's all here. Can you help me carry the bags Sam?"

"Yeah, of course." He picked up two of the garbage bags while Mikaela picked up one and they drug them down the stairs and out the door. Mikaela looked back at the house she had once lived in but surprisingly, felt no remorse or sadness from leaving it behind. She felt as if she was beginning a new, more loving life than she had once had. Melissa looked surprised when she saw the two teens coming into the car so quickly.

"Wow. That only took ten minutes. You sure can pack quickly Mikaela." She laughed lightly. Instead of trying to explain what had actually happened, Mikaela just laughed along. She was tired of trying to explain storied to everyone. It wore her out and mostly got her no farther than where she was before.

"Okay, well then off to the foster care facility. It's called Rhea County Foster Care Facility. The rooms they have are broken up by age group. Fortunately, since your age group does not have very many children in foster care, and many of the younger children were taken out to be fostered by families instead, it's going to be pretty empty in the facility. I wouldn't be surprised if you have an entire room all to yourself. Um…the owner of the facility is named Leah. If you have any questions you can ask her. Is there anything I forgot to mention?" Melissa asked Mikaela as they pulled up in front of Rhea's Foster Care. Mikaela suddenly had butterflies in her stomach. She squeezed Sam's hand again and shook her head no.

"Well then, I think we're all set to go in. Welcome to Rhea's Mikaela!" Melissa told the frightened teen as she stood up out of the car staring at the place she would call home for the next few months.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

The double doors slid open and Melissa led Mikaela, Sam, Judy and George into the facility smiling as much as she could. Immediately, Mikaela noticed the smell of the place. It smelled like dirty diapers and sewage. The lighting wasn't very good and it was difficult for her eyes to adjust to the room. The group walked forward to the front desk where a lady was waiting for them.

"Hi, we're here with Mikaela Banes. She is checking in today." Melissa smiled at Mikaela who looked miserable.

"Of course. Sweetheart, if you can just sign these few papers and if you could sign this too." The lady told Melissa. Mikaela signed the papers and stepped back giving Melissa room to sign them too.

"Okay. Well I'm Tammy. It's very nice to meet you. I can give you a tour of the place if you'd like." She told Mikaela, Sam, Judy and George. They nodded eagerly, hoping and praying that it got better as they walked further into the facility. Tammy showed them the recreation room first. Even though it was meant for fun, the room was mostly empty with a pool table and a few children's toys. The only lighting in the room was coming from the window on the far wall. The cafeteria was no better as it looked like it had never been cleaned before and most of the tables had chairs missing or broken on the side wall. There were a few children eating dinner in there and it looked like the food was inedible. Finally, Tammy took them to the room Mikaela would be staying in. Even though the actual upkeep of the room was no different than the rest of the place, at least it was empty.

"For now." Mikaela thought. She placed her bags on the bed by the window. There were about twelve beds in all lined up in a row. Mikaela wanted to compare it to an orphanage, but that was pretty much what it was.

"I'll let you get settled in. Here are a few papers telling you the times the cafeteria is open and when activities are held. Curfew is ten o'clock on weekdays and twelve on weekends. We expect you to sign in and out every time you walk out the front doors. Other than that, you have free rein of the place. Well, I think that's it. Let me know if you need anything. Oh! And Leah will be in later tonight to introduce herself to you." Tammy smiled one more time at Mikaela and left the room. Immediately Judy and George turned to Melissa.

"Do you really think we're going to leave her here? This place is terrible!" Melissa nodded.

"I know it isn't the best place for her, but her father picked this place out. She has to stay here until the court date. Don't worry, I checked and Mikaela can be out of this place as early as five in the morning and you heard the curfew times. They don't care if she doesn't show up until the curfew times. So really, she just has to sleep here." Melissa told the disgruntled parents. Mikaela turned to look up at them.

"Judy, George, really its okay. I can handle staying here for a few months. If it's what my dad wanted, it's what I have to do." She told them. Judy and George hugged her tightly.

"You're eating at our house everyday young lady. I don't want you eating this garbage, it's going to make you sick." Judy told her. Mikaela laughed.

"I definitely won't be eating anything here. Don't worry. And you'll be sick of, kicking me out of the house when I show up everyday." She told the family. Judy hugged her one more time.

"Okay, get a good night's sleep. We'll see you tomorrow sweetheart. Sam do you want to stay a little longer? Melissa said she'll drive us back in her car and you can drive the van home." Judy asked her son.

"Yeah. I want to stay longer." Judy tossed the keys to him, said goodbye to Mikaela one more time and then left with George and Melissa to go home. Sam immediately turned to Mikaela.

"I am so so so sorry. I can't believe this place. I'm not kidding when I say I'm picking you up every morning at seven and your not coming back to this place until exactly ten at night. Twelve on the weekends. You were joking when you said that we could be sick of you but you're going to be sick of me. Seriously." He told her.

"Sam. Stop. First of all, I could never, ever, be sick of you. Second of all, I have no doubt that you will pick me up everyday and I hope you do. Thirdly, I know this isn't the best place but I'm going to try to make the best of it. I don't even have to be here except for seven or eight hours a day. It's really not bad. And I'm sure I can stay at your house some nights if I ask. They have to let kids have sleepovers with there friends. Even though our sleepover isn't exactly the same thing…" She was trying to make him laugh but he wouldn't do it for her. "Come on Sam. Please don't be this upset. It's not like you're abandoning me. I know you're doing all you can to help and believe me, you have helped me more than I could ever imagine anyone doing." This made him cheer up a little.

"Okay Mikaela. I believe you." He kissed her. "Now let's unpack your stuff. I'm sure I'm going to be kicked out soon and you can't unpack all of this by yourself." She smiled at him and they began unpacking the three garbage bags full of Mikaela's personal items. It was ten o'clock before someone came into the room and kicked Sam out of the facility. Mikaela reminded him that she had her phone, that she loved him and that she would see him tomorrow and kissed him goodbye before he walked out the door. Mikaela fell on top of her bed feeling a little more content now that she knew what her situation was and that despite all of this, she still had an amazing support system behind her.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Three months passed by quickly for both Mikaela and Sam. True to his word, Sam picked her up from Rhea's every morning and took her to his house for the entire day. It was as if Mikaela had never even left the Witwicky's house. Sam and Mikaela's relationship was better than ever and Mikaela knew she wanted nothing else than to spend the rest of her life with Sam.

However, the court date was coming closer and just one day away from it, Mikaela was getting nervous. The night before the day they were going to court, Mikaela stayed extra long at Sam's house talking to him about how she felt about the situation. Of course, she knew she was doing the right thing and she was coached as much as she could possibly be coached about it in three months, but that didn't stop her from having apprehension about the entire thing. It also didn't stop Sam from being right next to her throughout the entire ordeal. Mikaela lay in bed that night trying to get some sleep but having no luck. It took her a few hours to relax and tell herself that she would be fine the next day and she then fell asleep.

Mikaela was picked up from the foster care facility at eight o'clock that morning and was taken to the Rhea County Court House for the court hearing. Accompanying her to court was Sam (of course), Judy, George, Melissa, an attorney, and the two detectives who had coached her on what to say in court. As they walked into the courthouse, Mikaela had memories of being here when her father was convicted of grand theft auto a few years back. It hurt her to see that she was back again, but this time, she was involved as well. The courthouse was large with mostly wooden benches and walls. Mikaela sat down on one of the benches next to Sam. Melissa had told them that they would be called in shortly and that they should wait in the hallway.

"Where is my father?" Mikaela wanted to know.

"The attorney just went to talk to your father's attorney and he said that they are down the hall in another room. Don't worry, you don't have to see him before or after the hearing if you don't want to." Melissa told her. Mikaela breathed a sigh of relief. She was worried she would have to see her father and not know what to say to him.

Half an hour later, Mikaela's case was called and the group walked inside. The Witwicky's, detectives, and Melissa took a seat in the pews behind Mikaela while Mikaela and the attorney took a seat before the judge's bench. A door opened on the other side of the room and in walked another attorney and then Mikaela's father. Behind her father were Victoria, Alison and Jake. Mikaela drew her breath in sharply. She never realized that seeing her father would make her so nervous. Let alone seeing Victoria and her two children. Mikaela's attorney reached over and patted her arm.

"Don't worry Mikaela. You'll do fine." He told her and that was all Mikaela needed to hear. She felt her confidence come back and she straightened up and looked forward as her father walked by her. He took his place on his side of the room and seconds later, the judge was announced and everyone stood.

"Judge Lewis presiding. Everyone rise!" the bailiff announced to the court room. Everyone stood as the judge walked through the doors to the courtroom. Judge Lewis was in his fifties with slightly graying dark hair and medium build. He had a straight face on so Mikaela couldn't tell if he was kind or strict. Judge Lewis took his seat and motioned for everyone else to sit as well. And so the court session began.

Court lasted for about two hours before Mikaela was even called up to the stand. She walked up with confidence although she could feel butterflies in her stomach again. Mikaela's attorney was the first to ask her questions.

"Mikaela, is it true that your father has physically abused you and if yes, can you please describe the abuse." Mikaela knew this question would come up and she was prepared to answer it.

"Yes, he did physically abuse me. He would punch me and kick me, sometimes until I passed out on the floor. He verbally abused me also." Mikaela told the jury.

"Can you explain the verbal abuse?" the attorney asked.

"He would call me a mistake. He would say that no one wanted me or loved me and that I would be better off dead. He threatened to kill me too." Mikaela told the attorney. This shocked the people in court room. Some whispering erupted and Judge Lewis called for silence in the court room. He nodded his head for the questioning to continue.

"Okay Mikaela, I have one more question for you. Do you believe your father deserves to go to jail for what he has done?" Mikaela thought no more than one second about it.

"Absolutely. I love him and even though he is my father, he hurt me and he needs to be punished for it." Mikaela answered.

"No further questions." Her attorney stated and then he walked back to where he was standing. Her father's attorney stood up to question Mikaela next. Mikaela knew she was halfway through with the questioning, but she had gotten the easy part done with first.

"Mikaela, is it true that your father has been abusing you for months, yet you didn't say anything about it until just recently?" the attorney asked.

"Yes, that's true." She answered.

"And is it true that you could have just as easily made up the verbal abuse that you say you endured from your father? It could have just as easily been administered by your boyfriend." The attorney said.

"Yes I could have made it up but I didn't. I would never make something up like that or blame someone else for doing it." Mikaela said.

"Okay Mikaela. One more question. How is it possible that your father had enough power to knock you out so you say for hours, but there is no physical evidence of abuse internally?" Mikaela had no answer for this one.

"I don't know. All I know is that he would beat and kick me until I passed out in my room. I don't know why there isn't any internal damage, but like you, I'm glad that there isn't." Mikaela almost snapped at the attorney. She was warned to keep her temper in check during court but she couldn't help herself. The attorney wanted to know why she was "making up" a story when there was evidence that it happened right in front of him.

"No further questions." The attorney walked back to his place. Mikaela was allowed to walk back to her attorney as well.

The court session continued for hours with very few breaks in which Mikaela was only allowed to be in a room with her attorney and not allowed to talk to Sam or anyone else. Finally, the jury had come to a decision as to whether or not Dave Banes was guilty.

"We the jury find David Banes….guilty of physical and verbal abuse." Mikaela could have cried she was so happy. There were a few cheers in the back of the court room but no one could be happier than Mikaela.

"David Banes, you are sentenced to 25 to 50 years in federal state prison. Court dismissed." The judge stood and walked out of the court room and finally Mikaela was allowed to rejoice with the rest of the group. She immediately ran over to Sam who picked her up and spun her around. She hugged him tightly not wanting to let go. She was glad he was here to enjoy this moment with her.


End file.
